Letters: Supports Spadea

With Raritan Township in the new 16th Legislative District, the team of Sen. Mike Doherty, his chief of staff Ed Smith, Assemblyman DiMaio and Assemblyman Peterson will be sorely missed.

Bill Spadea is the man to fill the seat of the late Assemblyman Pete Biondi of the 16th. Spadea will keep Pete’s legacy alive: pro-family, pro-life and pro-Second Amendment.

Spadea will deal with the state Department of Environmental Protection in much the same way Doherty handled the bureaucracy in 2008 when he took on the monster in its quest to ban outdoor wood-fired furnaces. Doherty headed off what could have become an economic calamity for homeowners dependant upon these units for heat. Through a proactive approach of packing town hall meetings in Hunterdon and Warren counties, Doherty managed to stall the agendas of Ed Choromanski in his attempt to ban these units.

Spadea’s position on Highlands legislation echoes that of Freeholder Will Mennen: the Highlands Act is an ill-conceived, thinly veiled land grab that is disproportionately punitive to the residents of Hunterdon. It amounts to state sanctioned extortion to wave as inducement some potential reductions in COAH planning obligations when these affordable housing quotas are being reviewed and could potentially be changed under a new Republican governor. Local autonomy needs to be restored and Spadea will get the job done!

The 31 Abbott school districts which account for 20% of the state’s kids suck up 60% of the state income tax in the form of state aid which our state constitution dictates shall be equally divided among all students. Suburban towns accounting for 80% of the state’s youth receive only 40% of state education funds, pay seven times the amount of income tax, and in some cases receive no state aid whatsoever.

Such a scenario forces suburban towns to increase property taxes to fill this void. Spadea recognizes this and supports Sen. Doherty’s Fair School Funding formula, which calls for equal distribution of state aid on a per-pupil basis.

If adopted, early projections indicate an average savings for home owners in Hunterdon of at least 30% on their property tax bills. See the Fair School Funding website located at www.fairschoolfunding.com for further details.

Bill is a highly respected businessman, Marine reservist and a family man standing as a role model for all who revere traditional America. Defense of family, work, faith, traditional marriage and the Second Amendment are not just punch lines with Bill Spadea — he embodies them.